Golden Knights sign young defenseman to a four-year extension

The Vegas Golden Knights have re-signed defenseman Kaedan Korczak to a four-year, $13M contract extension, per Stephen Whyno of AP News. The deal will carry an annual cap hit of $3.25M. Vegas later confirmed the deal in a team press release. In that release, the team also mentioned it signed defenseman Jeremy Davies to a two-year contract.

Korczak will earn a hardy bode of confidence with this news. He has one more season left on a two-year, $1.65M contract signed on July 1, 2024. With that contract in place, Korczak was promoted to Vegas’ extra defender role — marking his first season spending the full year with the NHL roster. He was often a healthy scratch over the course of the season, but still managed to record 10 assists, one penalty, and a plus-15 across 40 games. He also recorded 59 hits in his appearances — giving him the fifth-most hits per-60 minutes of ice time.

Physical hockey and strong passing were the two features that Vegas aimed to buy in signing Korczak to a multi-year extension last season. It evidently saw enough to stand confident in his abilities, and will now keep Korczak controlled through his age-33 season in 2029-30.

A hefty contract extension could be a strong indication that Korczak is set for a nightly feature in Vegas’ lineup, likely in place of fellow giant Nicolas Hague, who was recently traded to the Nashville Predators. Korczak has appeared in 77 NHL games across the last four seasons, and managed one goal, 21 points and a plus-25. He has also recorded 39 points and a minus-three in 134 AHL games since 2020.

Vegas will find an insurance defender in the gritty Davies, who has spent the last four seasons primarily in the minor leagues. He recorded a staggering 11 goals and 48 points in 72 games with the AHL Belleville Senators this season — marking a new career-high. The boost in scoring came alongside a dwindling in penalties, with Davies recording 44 PIMs this year after posting 90 PIMs just two seasons ago. 

He’s been a fixture of the minor leagues through his six-year professional career, so far only stepping into 23 NHL games and recording three points. A standout year with Belleville could be enough to warrant NHL attention next year, though Davies will likely have to climb his way up from a feature role with the AHL Henderson Silver Knights.